Typewriting machine



Dec, 16, 1924.

c. B. coRcoRAN TYPEWRITING, MACHINE med Marcnls, 1921 /n vmfar:

Patented Dee., i6, 1924.

U NLITED SI conNnLr-Usfn# consorten," or vPiron-Ni Wnrrnn contrari-Y,i or New*'renin n] Y., a coRroRA'rron-'or DELAWARE! TYPENREING :MACHE'NE Application filed March 15, 1921.

Beit .known that l, CORNELIUS B. Conocn,iN,` a citizen ot the United States, residing in Phoenix., in the county oit Maricopa and State ot' Arizona, have invented certain new andnuselul Improvements in- Typewriting Machines, of which thefollowing is a specilicat-io-n.-

The present invention relates to typewriting. machines and column indicators therefor.` l

lVork-sheets adapted :tor tabulator and column work are usually. provided with heads or captions at the upper' ends ot the columns. When a `large number ot' items have been ente-red one below the other, the captions are. so far removed from the printing line as to make it ditl'icult for the operator to know whether the items are being .entered in the correct column. rlhe present invention provides means wherebyy the column captions may be kept prominently in view whenever desired, whether the typing is being performed at the beginning or at the end of a work-sheet. lhen not in use, said means may be swung to ineffective or inoperative position out of the way ofthe worksheets. The means employed comprises a stripsimilar to the portion ot the worksheethead containing the captions,which strip is held by a. bail at the front of the platen in full view of the operator, The leading' edge ot the workfsheet passes under the strip to the rear ot the machine. The strip may correspond tol any'type .of worksheet used and is readily replaceable. When it is no longer desired to use the machine for tabulator or column work, the bail may be swung to the rear ot' the platen to an ineffective position.

In certain classes ot' work, such as the typing of ledger-sheets, the sheets are filled out by a series ot single-line entries, eac-h made ata separate insertion of the work-sheetin the machine. The heading strip and the strip-holder of the present invention are especially adapted to facilitate and expedite work ot this character'. The strip is supported near enough to the line of writing and is sutiiciently narrow to permit the operator to grasp the upper margin of the worksheet above the strip and adjust the worksheet both to register its columns with the divisions of the strip and to locate it in any serial No.' 452,442.

desired writing-line position at a single operation.

It is a feature of the present invention that the heading strip is supported inflependentlyot' the platen and out of contact therewith, so that a work-sheet may be adjusted freely between the strip and platen.

In accordance with one feature of the invention, the' heading-strip support has an upwardly and rearwardly inc-lined rear tace located to intercept the leading-edge ot the work-sheet in the path which it naturally follows as it issues from the platen, to guide the sheet rearwardly behind the heading strip. lVith this construction, it is unnecessary to guide the sheet behind the heading strip with the lingers, or to withdraw the heading'strip duringhinsertion ot the sheetand later place it in effective position over the sheet.

Other features and advantages will hereinafter appear.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure l is a frontview of an Underwood standard typewriting machine with the invention applied thereto, only the necessary cooperating-elements of the machine being shown.

Figure 2 is a vertical section, taken on the line 2 2 of Figure l.

Figure 3 is a. detail view, in plan, of the right-hand end of the strip-holder.

A platen l0 is lined upon an axle ll, journaled in the end walls l2 of a plateaframe forming part ot the usual typewriter carriage. liTork-sheets 13 are adapted to be ted around the platen by means of the usual 'eederolls le. The platen may be rotated in either direction by knobs l5 lixed to the ends of the platen axle, or line-spaced by the line-space mechanism including the line-space wheel 16.

rIhe work-sheet illustrated is ot the type adapted for ruse in'bookkeeping'or computinglnachines, and, in general, is typical olf sheets adapted for use in tabulator or column Work, in that it is provided with columns, each column having a caption at the head thereof, and the captions being in horizontal alignment. It will be seen as the sheet is line-spaced, the captions move further away from the printing line until the operator linds it diiiicult to distinguish the columns. it the sheet long and oi thin material, the upper end will fall backwards, thus carrying the captions completely out Oi view of the operator. rl`here is provided, at the front of the platen, a strip 2O preferably about a single line in width and comprising the line ot' column captions at the top of sheet 13. It is preferable to cut the strip directly from one of the sheets, in this way insuring a strip having exact duplicate captions.

The strip 2O is adapted to seat in a metal holder 21 having top and bottom inturned flanges 22 and 23. The holder is supported on the sides of the platen-frame by arms 24 and 25 pivoted on vertical brackets 26 and 27 liXed on the side walls 12. In Figure 2 arm 25 is shown pivoted on bracket 2T and 28. Each of the arms 24, 25 comprises a iorwardly-extending portion 80, a laterally-disposed portion 31 bent horizontally at right angles to portion 30, and a downwardly-extending portion 32, at the lower end of which the holder 21 is attached.

Disposed between the portion 30 of each arm 24, 25 and each of the brackets 26, 27 is a thrust-link 35 composed of two telescoping parts 3G and 37, the former part being slidable in the latter part and having a compression spring 38 housed within part 37 and normally pressing the parts outwardly. Each thrust-link is pivoted at one end to the portion 30 of the arms 24, 25, and at the other end to the bracket 26 or 27 at point 39, above the pivots of said arms on the brackets. rlhe springs 38 will tend to rotate arms 24 and 25 downwardly, until they strike the tops of the platen-frame side walls, thus limiting their downward movement. In this position, shown in full lines in Figure 2, the strip 20 is located at the front of the platen as shown in Figure 1, and slightly above the platen to allow the work-sheet to pass thereunder.

vWhen it is no longer desired to tabulate, the holder and strip may be swung rearwardly about pivots 28 to the dotted-line posit-ion oi' Figure The thrust-links hold the arms 24 and 25 in their rearward positions, since the springs press the telescoping` parts outwardly, thus forcing the arms downwardly. The thrust-links are thus in the nature of two-way springs acting to either side of the vertical axes through pivots 28.

Referring to Figure 3, it will be seen that the arms and the thrust-links are positioned adjacent the inside surl'aces of t-he brackets. The thrust-links lie between the arms and the brackets. The arms 24 and 25 are provided with hubs 40 to space them from said brackets a sufficient distance to allow free movement of the thrust-links. The thrustlinks terminate at their ends in semi-cy-v that their shoulders may operate against the Hat portions of the semi-cylindrical surfaces.

The strip 2O is slidable laterally in the holder to enable the column captions thereof to be aligned with the columns of the work-sheet. A spring 45 iixed to arm 25 and pressing against the face of the holder is adapted to hold the strip in adjusted posit-ion.

A side edge gage 50, adjustably mounted on a paper-table 51, may be used to locate the work-sheets lengthwise of the platen, relatively to the strip 2O and relatively to tabulator-st'ops (not shown).

By reference to Figures 1 and 2, it will be understood that the holder 21 for the indexstrip 20 is so positioned by engagement of the arms 24 and 25 withr the ends of the platen-iframe as to cause the index-strip to be located at the front of the platen between the printing line and a horizontal plane passing through the top of the platen, and substantially in the position, relatively to the printing line, normally occupied by the row of captions on the work-sheet when typing is begun on the sheet. In other words, the distance between the printing line Ion the platen and the row of captions on the strip 20 in the holder 21 is substantially equal to that by which the average operator spaces the first line of typing from the row of captions or heading of a worksheet. In placing a work-sheet into the machine with the strip-holder 21 and strip 2O in yoperative positions, the vertical lines on the strip 20 at opposite sides ot va caption are aligned with the lines on the worksheet which bound the column having the same caption. A heading for a work-sheet in the `form of a rowv of captions can best be yobserved by the operator of a typewriting machine when the captions are in position :tor having the rst line written on the worksheet. In the use of the present invention, the index-strip 2O enables the captions to be continued substantially in such position during the typing down a sheet from top to bottom, so that the captions ai'e always in a position to form a heading for the portion of the work-sheet being written upon, so located as to best facilitate the filling in of the sheet. This provision for continuing the captions during typing down a worksheet substantially in the positions, relative to the printing line, which they normally occupy on the work-sheet when work is iirst begun upon it, is a Ynovel and important feature oi3 my invention.

The strip-holder 21 and strip 2O are made relatively narrow, so as to cover but a small area on a work-sheet and to render the worksheet readily visible both above and bel-ow the strip-holder, and the holder21 is also so positioned asto locate the index-strip 20 closely adjacent to the Vplaten-10 t'o'ifacilitate comparison of Athe lwriting bel-ow the strip 2O and strip-holder 2l withthe writing above them as well as with the captions lon the index-strip. For example," in writing figures in any of the columns on' the-worksheet, the figures being written below'the strip-holder 2l may be readily compared with those written above it, in orderto assure the writing oit units under units, tens under tens, etc.

The downwardly-extendingk portions 32 of the arms 24; and 25 oi' the strip-holder 2l are so arranged as to causethe strip-holder to be so inclined downwardly'and forwardly toward the 'operator as to present the face of the index-strip 20 substantially at right angles to the line of sight of the operator in observing the strip. Such an arrangement of the strip 2() best facilitates its inspection and use by the operator.

The guidance of a work-sheet around the platen of a typewriting machine to the printing line involves but small ditiiculty, whereas the guidance of the strip rearwardly from the printing line necessitates the provision of members which oier more or less obstruction to the manipulation of the work-sheet in the use of the machine. It will be understood by reference to Figure 2 that the under surfaces of the extensions 32 of the arms 24 and 25 and the under sur- Ytace of the strip-holder 21 extend downwardly and forwardly across the vertical plane tangential to the platen l() at the printing line. lThis construction enables a work-sheet to be passed from the printing line between the strip-holder 21 and the platen l() without the provision of guiding means other than that for guiding the strip to the printing line, and also enables the strip-holder 2l and the downwardly-extending portions 32 of the arms 24C and 25 to serve as guiding means for properly directing the strip in its movement away from the printing line rearwardly of the platen. The necessity for using other means for guiding the work-sheet rearwardly of the printing line is thereby obviated.

The portions 30 of the arms 24 and 25 of the strip-holder 2l are of such a length that, when they are swung rearwardly on the platen-frame, they carry the stripholder 2l and strip 2O to ineffective position down behind the upper end of the paper-table 5l. In such positions of the stripholder 21 and strip 20, they are entirely out or the way of the work-sheet, so that a work-sheet, in the typing of which it is not desired to use the strip 20, may be typed as convenient-ly `on a. machine provided with the strip 20 and strip-holder 21 as on a machine which is not provided with such parts.

Variations may be resorted to within the of the platen which are pivotally mounted at their rear on the platen-:trame and are arranged normally to co-act with the end portions of the platen-frame to support the heading strip close to the platen but independently of the platen and out of contact therewith and immediately above the linel oi writing in full view of an operator seated at the machine in writing position, the construction and arrangement being such that the feed-rolls may be cast off and a worksheet adjusted reely between the headingstrip carrier in its normal position and the platen to register the work-sheet columns with the corresponding heading-strip divisions, and the heading strip and its carrier being suiiiciently narrow and located suiiiciently near the line of writing to permit the operator to grip the leading margin of the work-sheet above the heading strip and adjust the sheet to any writing-line position at the same operation and simultaneously with the registering ot its columns with the divisions oii the heading strip, and the heading-strip carrier being swingable on its pivot to a position to locate the heading strip and carrier Completely out of the way in an ineffective position behind the papenguiding shelf at the introductory side of 'the platen when it is desired to convert thc machine for work which does not require the use of the heading strip, and means for retaining the carrier in effective or ineffective position.

2. In a front-strike typewriting machine for typing on a work-sheet which includes a series of headed columns, a platen, feed-rolls co operating therewith, paper guiding means 'for guiding a work-sheet around the platen and vertically upward past the line of writing, a platen-frame, a work-sheet deflector mounted on the platen-frame and having an upwardly and rearwardly inclined surface a short distance above the line of writing and intersecting the vertical plane of the line et writing to intercept the leading llo edge of a Work-sheet guided vertically past the printing point and deflect it to the rear as it is inserted to Writing position, said delector being supported close to the platen but independently thereof and out of contact therewith, and a column locating and indicating heading strip having characteristic column headings and divisions identical With column headings and divisions on the Work-sheet carried by Ithe deiiector immediately above the line of Writing and in full view of the operator, the construction and arrangement being such that the feedrolls may be cast off and the Work-sheet adjusted freely between the platen and the deciently near the line of Writing to permit the operator to grip the leading margin of the Work-sheet above the heading strip and to adJust the sheet to any Writing-line position .at the saine operation and simultaneously with the registering of its columns with the divisions of the heading strip.

CORNELUS B. CORCORAN. Witnesses PAUL J. CURR13. P. A. VAN HOFF. 

